Forever This Way
by WingedJewel
Summary: When another bird-kid shows up, Max doesn't trust her. Bad things have been happening ever since she showed up. Max has had enough. She needs to find out the truth - and fast, because the Flock's destiny depends on it.
1. Chapter 1

At last, at last. The flock and I were airborne, coasting over land and water. Just like old times. The wind swept through my hair, and I closed my eyes, memorizing what it felt like to just be _free._ The ocean below us gently rose and fell, just like my wings, raising up and then falling down.

"Max?" Angel called.  
"What?"  
"I'm hungry."  
"Oh. Well I guess we could land over there," I said, pointing to the nearest town I could see, "and get something to eat at a restaurant."  
"Ok, thanks!" she replied happily before flying off to catch up with Nudge.  
Fang flew up beside me, his powerful black wings synchronized with mine. "You know, Max, we can't keep on the run forever."  
"Yeah, I know. I've been thinking. Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea to just find an island, and, you know, let the rest of the world go on without us…"  
"Really? That's great. I can tell Nudge is getting tired of going from place to place. Possibly Gazzy too. It would be nice, to settle down in one place. No more changes, no more surprises. You know?"  
"Yeah, I know," I replied. "Ok guys! Time to take a break. Let's go get something to eat!"  
The rest of the Flock cheered, and headed to the little town I had seen. It turns out we were in New York, just by the Canadian border. We found the nearest 'Jack In The Box' and stuffed ourselves on burgers and fries.  
"Uhhh," Iggy moaned. "I'm stuffed."  
"Me too," the Flock said in unison. Then we heard something we did _not _want to hear. Nudge's eyes got huge and Iggy was gasping for air.  
"Quick!" I cried. "Get out of here! Gazzy, couldn't you have held it _in_?"  
Gazzy laughed. "Yeah, but this is so much funnier!"  
All six of us raced outside like Erasers were on our tails. Wait- I mean wings. We don't have tails. Gazzy was still laughing hysterically as we jumped up and unfurled our wings. The sun was beginning to set.

"Hey, we should find somewhere to hang for the night," Iggy said. "It's getting dark.

"Right. What about that forest over there?"

"Looks good," he replied.

The Flock and I rose up into the cool night air and changed our direction to the forest I had seen.

_Max. _It was Angel.

_What is it, sweetie? _I thought back.

_Someone's here. Behind you._

I whipped around just in time to have something big smash into me, sending me spiraling downward.


	2. Chapter 2

_What the heck? _I thought as I fell. My arm throbbed and my wings weren't working properly.

"Max!" Nudge cried. "Fang! Do something!"

I couldn't hear what else was said because I was too far away. I was too far away!! Crap! I was going to die! "HELP!" I screamed. "I'm falling!"

I heard a faint scream, most likely Nudge, which caused terror to shoot through me. I was falling. Fast. And when you couldn't hear Nudge, you knew something was wrong. Nudge was the loudest kid I'd ever known. Heck, you could hear her from a mile away!

I was temporarily blinded when my hair whipped around my face, covering my eyes. I did the best I could to flip around, so I could see. I wish I didn't. The ground was getting bigger.

Bigger.

Bigger.

Ok, you get the point. But just in case:

BIGGER.

I quickly flipped over again, this time holding my hair so I could see. Someone- or something- was flying toward me. I couldn't even yell when I hit the ground. Surprisingly, I didn't even hear the crunch of bones snapping. I didn't feel any pain. Something wasn't right. Or was it?

I tried to stand up, falling as I put weight on my left arm. Dang it! It hurt so much! Tears quickly filled my eyes.

"Are you okay?" I heard a light, airy voice behind me. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bump into you. I didn't know there was anyone else in the sky. I'm Dee, by the way."

Rubbing my wrist, I looked up at this strange girl. "Am I _okay??_ I could've died! You totally wrecked my wrist!" I shouted angrily.

Dee looked hurt. "I- I'm sorry- I really didn't mean to. You look okay to me. Well, except for your wrist… but it heals quickly, right?"

"Yeah, but that's not the point! Because you weren't paying attention, I could've _died_! I am _not_ okay! Do you have any idea how freakin' horrible it is to fall through the sky?? Your wings not working? Have you ever been in that situation? Huh? No, no, you have_ not!_

"Er, no… I'm really sorry, I honestly didn't mean-"

"Yeah, you didn't mean to, but look what happened!!" I was mad now. Who did she think she was, coming up here and hitting me so hard she broke my wrist?

"I really didn't mean to! I'm sorry!" She yelled.

"Well sorry doesn't cut it!" I yelled back. I stood, using my right arm this time, my left hanging by my side. "Stay away from me, and my Flock!"

Taking a running start, I leaped into the air, my wings powerful behind me, and I flew into the sky.

_Maximum, Maximum, Maximum._

_What?!_

_You are being very foolish, you know. Dee did not mean any harm,_

_She broke my arm! She's so, so, so… oh I don't know! There's something wrong about her!_

_Maximum. Sometimes bad things must happen for good things to come._

_Voice! SHUT UP! Just leave me alone, okay??_

_As you wish, Maximum. As you wish…_


	3. Chapter 3

As I flew in the sky, my only thought was of finding the Flock. What if they were hurt? Had Dee been working with someone who wanted us dead? I rose higher until the whole sky stretch out before me, big and dark and open.

_Max!_

_Angel! Where are you? Is everything okay? Did you get hurt? Where's the Flock?_

_Max! You're okay! _

_Um, yes. Where are you?_

_Behind you, silly!_

Turning around, I saw my Flock before me. My wonderful, amazing Flock. "Guys!!" I exclaimed, racing over to each of them, hugging them as tightly as I could. "I thought something bad had happened! That someone captured you! Oh, God, I'm so glad you're safe!" I let out a sigh in relief.

_Max?_

_Yeah, sweetie?_

_Fang was worried. He still is._

_Oh ok, thanks._

_He wants you to talk to him, but alone._

_Oh. Ok, then, um, I will._

"Fang?" I called, looking at him. "Can we talk? Alone?" He quickly nodded and turned away.

I flew behind him, carefully synchronizing my wings with his so that our wings barely touched. He stopped and turned to face me, his face pale. "Max." His voice broke as he said my name. "I thought you were- that you were- dead."

I flew over to him, taking his hand firmly in mine, and said, "Oh, Fang. You should know I'll never leave you. Remember? I die when you die." I smiled at him, and leaning closer, whispered, "I'll never leave you Fang. I love you."

God, how mushy could I get? He was sooo lucky I finally admitted it. We flew back to the Flock together, in the cool night air. Iggy and Gazzy were doing something… were they making a bomb? They spotted me looking at them and put on 'innocent' faces. Oh well. Those bombs had saved me tons of times before!

"Hey, everyone, I think we should find a place to stay for the night," I said.

Nudge came up to me, someone following her. "Max?"

"Yeah, Nudge? What is it?"

"Can um, can she stay with us?"

"Who?"

"Dee." DEE! The Dee that broke my wrist? Now that I thought about it, my wrist started throbbing again.

"NO!"

"Max, please? She doesn't have anywhere else to go! She's really sorry she hit you." Nudge was silent.

NO NO NO NO NO! I wanted to scream. That would hurt Nudge's feelings, though, so I suppressed my anger. "Nudge, no."

She was still silent. I slowly turned my head to look at her. "Please?" She whispered, doing what she did best. You guessed it – _bambi eyes._


	4. Chapter 4

The night went by quickly. Dee ended up staying – all thanks to Nudge, with her big bambi eyes – and it turned out, Dee actually did have a flaw. She snored like an angry chainsaw!! It was so annoying, listening to it all night long. I actually had to move farther away just to get some sleep. I still didn't trust Dee; I could feel she wasn't entirely all happy-goody-two-shoes. Maybe she was an evil twin. Hey, it could happen!

"Rise and shine, guys! It's a new day, and I bet you're hungry!!" I called, shaking Gazzy and Nudge to get them up. Iggy was already up, standing with Angel, who was smiling. I wonder what was going on in that evil mind of hers…

Anyway, Dee was the last one awake. She stood up groggily, saying, "Jalapeño? Where's the popsicle?" Iggy stifled a laugh, turning away, and I saw Angel smile angelically. Had she…? No, no.

Everyone decided on McDonalds' for breakfast, even though it was already eleven. We set off, by foot, to the nearest one. Once there, I went up to the cashier, saying, "Hi. I'd like three double cheeseburgers, two large fries, one fish fillet thing, two diet cokes, and, um, how 'bout nine chocolate chip cookies?"

She smiled. "Feeding a crowd?" She asked.

"You could say that."

"Ok. Your total is-"

"Wait, I'm not done yet. They still have to order too. " I pointed behind me where the Flock and Dee were waiting. Angel smiled, and Nudge waved.

"Oh! Well, okay then, let's hear their orders too."

Gazzy stepped up to the counter. "I'll take eight hamburgers, five apple pies, one McFlurry, and an extra-large coke. Wait, and two large fries. Thanks!"

"I'll have the same as him," Iggy said, "only make that five cherry pies, and another large fry."

"Uh, okay, so that's…" The lady said as she punched in their orders quickly.

"Hi! I'd like four Caesar salads, each with a different kind of saucey-stuff, um, six pies, three apple, three cherry, three medium cokes, and a chicken sandwich." Nudge said quickly.

"And I'll have two large fries, four sugar cookies, one chicken salad, and one chicken nugget Happy Meal," Angel said.

Then Fang came up, saying, "I'll take two #10's, three large fries, two Big-Macs, and four large cokes." Dee appeared behind him and ordered the same as Fang.

"Uh, um, okay! Your total is, um, let's see…" The cashier looked awfully confused. "Er, one-hundred thirteen dollars and twenty-three cents." She looked at me.

I handed her my credit card, and she swiped it. "Thank-you," I said sweetly.

"I'm stuffed," Iggy moaned.

"Me too," said Gazzy. I think I need to go to the bathroom…"

I heard a noise coming from Gazzy's side of the table. "No. Gazzy. You did not. Oh no. Quick escape! Save yourself!" Iggy cried, running out the door. The rest of the Flock followed faithfully. Dee was still sitting inside, looking confused.

"Any second now…" Gazzy whispered to me. Dee started to get up, and then it hit her. She nearly doubled over, gasping for fresh air. She ran outside, panting, and said, "Ok. Now I know why everyone left!"


	5. Chapter 5

By two, even I was getting exhausted from flying. We decided to land by a waterfall by the Canadian Border.

"You do know which waterfall this is, right?" Nudge asked.

"Um, no?" I said.

"This is Niagara Falls, Max! The coolest waterfall in the world!" Yeah, I don't know about that… but whatever. Everyone was happy, and that's what mattered. We stood on the edge of the ground, where the land met the water. The rushing current looked strong. Very strong.

_Max._

_Yeah, Angel?_

_Something's gonna happen. I don't know what, but it's bad._

_Oh ok. Well, thanks for the warning, sweetie. I'll keep my eye out._

_It's going to take more than that, Maximum. _

_I thought I told you to leave me alone!_

_You need to be careful. _

_Why?_

_You will soon find out._

Of course I will. I always do. Cause that kind of bad stuff just happens to me, doesn't it? Why yes it does.

"Oooh! A daffodil!" Nudge exclaimed. I was helping her and Angel pick flowers for God knows what, but they were having a good time, so I was too. Gazzy and Iggy were on the far side of the meadow we were in, doing something mischievous.

"Are you making a bomb?" I asked them.

"No!" They yelled in unison. I knew they were. Oh well. Let 'em have their fun.

The sun, shining down onto the meadow, warmed my wings as I stretched them out. I could hear a faint rushing of water, as well as Gazzy and Iggy chuckling to themselves. Angel was holding a bunch of flowers and Nudge kept handing her more, rambling on about each flowers and how cool it is. I looked around for Fang, but I didn't see him. Dee was nowhere in sight also.

"Hey Nudge, have you seen Fang anywhere?" I asked.

"Sorry, no," she replied.

_Max._

_Yeah, lamby?_

_Fang and Dee went off into the forest together. They went down the trail between those two trees._

_Oh, ok. Thanks!_

"I'll be right back, guys!" I called as I headed down the small dirt path. I walked through the forest for quite some time, carefully stepping over fallen leaves and twigs, when suddenly I heard voices.

"Fang?" It was Dee.

"Hmm?"

"Why is Max the leader of the Flock? I mean, why not you or Iggy?"

"Iggy and I aren't the leader because Max is just better at it." That's my Fang!

"Well, do you think _I _could be leader?" What?? Dee leaned closer to him, her long red hair falling over her shoulder. She smiled slightly. What was she _doing??_ I mean, I know he had a thing for red-haired girls, but this?! It's like she was desperate or something!

"I don't think so…"

"Why not, Fang?"

"Well, for one, Max wouldn't like it." Dang right I wouldn't! The Flock is mine!

"Why do you care so much for Max?" Dee asked.

"Well," Fang said. "She's tall, pretty, and strong; she has mean fighting skills, and well, she's my best friend…"

"But aren't I your friend?" Dee once again leaned close to Fang. She bit her bottom lip. I bit mine too. In disgust! Oh, my God. She was trying to turn the Flock against me!!

"Well, yeah, I guess." All of a sudden, Dee leaned forward even more and kissed Fang. On the _lips_.

"Whoa," Fang said. "I, uh, gotta go." He tried to gently push her away, but she resisted. "Punch her!" I was so badly to scream, but I couldn't blow my cover.

"C'mon, Fang… Max doesn't have to know…" Dee said. Max doesn't have to know?? Max _already_ knows!!

"No." Fang stood and walked away from Dee. She followed.

"Pleeeease? Fang? For me?" Dee pleaded. As she took a step toward him, he stepped back. She batted her eyelashes and twirled her hair around her finger.

"Dee, no."

"Yes."

Fang was silent. What was he doing? Was he giving in?? I wanted so badly to run over there, to give Dee a good hard punch in the face. Fang still hadn't moved. He was slowly getting less visible… I couldn't even see him now!

"Fang? Where are you?" No reply. Serves her right. Trying to mess with my Flock. Newsflash, Dee – the Flock is mine – and you can't do anything about it! Dee walked forward, and I held my breath. One more step and she would walk right into him! She walked forward, but nothing happened. Huh? Fang should be there!

Something brushed against my arm. I spun around just as a strong hand clamped firmly over my mouth.


	6. Chapter 6

I resisted the urge to scream, to cry out, to kick my attacker. I struggled beneath his strong grasp. I tried to turn around, but I couldn't. I stopped struggling and stood still. "Thanks," he whispered in my ear. "You were getting hard to hold down. Dee was totally hitting on me, don't you think?" He dropped his hand and spun me around so that I was facing him.

"Fang?!" I whispered. "How did you- you were over- whoa!" Fang laughed slightly to himself. He started to disappear again. "Fang?" I whispered. "We need to get out of here! Dee is gonna find out you're still here!"

"Oh, I know." Fang's voice came from behind me. "Let's just say it's a new ability, eh?" He smiled his signature half-smile, causing my heart to flip. "C'mon, let's get out of here." Fang led me through the trees and bushes, only a different way that I had come, until we reached a small meadow. He looked up at me.

I smiled. He smiled back. His hand gently brushed my cheek, and he kissed me. I closed my eyes and wrapped my arms around him. He did the same. I could get used to this…  
We kissed for awhile before I stopped, and pulled back.

"Fang."

"Max."

"We should get back. The Flock is probably worried."

"Yeah, you're right. C'mon, we can fly back."

He took my hand - *sigh* - and we sprinted two steps before leaping into the cool air. Our wings snapped out and lifted us high into the sunset. God, it felt so good, you know? To just be with the one I loved, knowing that my family was safe, made me feel… happy.

Still holding my hand, Fang flew closer to me, our wings just slightly touching. "Max," Fang said softly.

"Yeah?" I replied.

"I need to tell you something."

"Um, okay. Go for it."

"Max," he said again. "I- I love- I love y-"

Oh, my God. Was he saying he loved me?? OH MY GOD!

"…yams."

"You _what?!"_ I asked.

"I love, uh, yams. You know, that vegetable that, um, people like, and it's, er, orange or something…….."

"Oh. Yeah. Totally." I said.

Oh.

My.

God.

I.

Wish.

He.

Would.

Say.

He.

Loved.

Me.

Already!

I mean, it's not like he's too chicken or something, right? I told him I loved him!


	7. Chapter 7

The moon's light filtered through the clouds and shone onto the ground of our meadow. The surrounding forest was silent – even Dee had stopped snoring. Everyone was asleep except me. But I couldn't fall asleep. I had too much on my mind.

Fang had said he loved… yams. Yams? _Yams? _That was so strange I couldn't believe it. I thought for sure he was going to say something else. I mean, who even likes yams? I hate them, and I know Ella and Mom do too. Maybe it was just my imagination getting the better of me. I mean, he couldn't possibly have wanted to say 'I love you', could he? I sighed. Life was so complicated now. With being on the run, and having Dee trying to get my Flock (emphasis on _my_), I just wish things were the way they used to be.

No evil Jeb, no evil Ari, no Erasers, Flyboys, M-Geeks, or any of the other things that had threatened my family. I kinda just wanted to be normal, you know?

_Maximum, you will never be normal._

_Oh, thanks for the encouraging words, Voice!_

_The Voice is right, Max. _Angel chimed in.

_You can hear the Voice?_

_Of course. And he's right. You are the opposite of normal. Normal would be plain hair, plain eyes, plain family and problems and what not. You are stunningly pretty with brown and blonde hair, and sparkly eyes, and instead of a plain family, you have us. Problems for you are normal, but the problems themselves aren't. How many other people can say that they have been swimming with sea monsters huh? Normal would be an insult to you._

_Um, thanks, Angel._

_She's right, Max. She has a very good point._

_Why thank you!_

_Oh you're wel-_

_OK! STOP! I can't take it anymore! I'm going to be, and you two better get out of my head!!_

_Just be careful, Maximum. _

I covered my head with my arms and bit my tongue. I wanted to scream, "LEAVE ME ALONE! GET OUT OF MY HEAD!" But that would make me look mental, plus it would probably wake up everyone else. I needed to go for a fly. I stood up, walking past my beloved Flock. Jumping up, I opened my wings, lifting myself higher and higher into the air. Oh, did it feel good to be flying again.

I soared across the night sky, which was brightly lit with stars everywhere. Flying just had this calming effect on me, like tea sometimes has for people. I felt refreshed as I headed back down to the little meadow. I landed away from it, in the forest, and made my way to the meadow. As I was about to step out of the trees, I heard something that caught my attention.

"Max broke my leg!" Dee screamed. What kind of crap was that? I could see Dee, lying on the ground, her arms covering her right leg. "I was sleeping and she woke me up! I sat up, and then she grabbed my leg and snapped it!" Her statement was followed by a cry of pain. What kind of wacko would break her own leg? I didn't break it!

I stepped from the shadows of the trees. "What are you talking about?" I asked. "I didn't touch you!"

"Yes you d-did!" Dee was crying now. What a baby. If I was any other person than me right now, I would have believed Dee. But I was Maximum Ride, and I don't go around breaking people's legs for nothing!

"I did not!" I yelled. "I just went to fly around for a bit! How could say that, liar?!"

"_I'm _a liar? You're the one that's lying! Admit it, Max, you broke my leg." Dee started into a fit of blubbering like a baby. Nudge was kneeling beside her, talking to her. Iggy was bandaging her leg, and Gazzy was staring at me.

"What?" I said. "I didn't do it!" Gazzy turned away, tears in his eyes. Nudge looked up at me. I saw fear in her eyes, and hatred. They believed Dee! I had known them their _whole lives_ and they betrayed me like that? I looked to Fang. "Fang, can we talk?"

He nodded slightly and disappeared into the trees. I quickly followed him. "Do you think I broke her leg?" I asked.

Fang was silent. "I saw you get up…"

"Well, I did get up, but I had a lot on my mind, and I just wanted to go for a fly. You don't believe _her_, do you?"

"Actually I do."

"WHAT?!"

"Dee told me what you said. I can't believe you would betray me like this. From now on, just leave me alone." With that, Fang stalked off into the forest. I can't believe him! He chose Dee over me! And what did I say? I haven't talked to Dee the whole time she was here! That liar! Someone was going to get hurt, and trust me, it was not going to be me.


	8. Chapter 8

This is so unfair. I didn't even touch Dee! And I can't believe Fang would just turn on me like that, you know? I actually thought he trusted me! And I can't believe I actually trusted him. He ignores me now; doesn't even look at me. Even when he does, his eyes are filled with something I don't recognize. Dee smiles at him and continues to smirk at me when no one is watching. He actually smiles back, too, which creeps me out. Dee is such a creep!

I decided to go get some alone time by myself. No one trusts me anymore. I feel crushed. Like the weight of the world is pressing down on me, and suddenly, I'm not strong enough to push it back. Oh, I used to be, when I was in life-or-death situations. Or when my Flock was in trouble. Or when – or when Fang was hurt. I was there for him.

_Fang. _His name sounded hollow when I said it. I missed him so much. I also hated him. He didn't have the right to do this to me, after all these years it took to build what fragile relationship we had. He wanted me to leave him alone. _"Just leave me alone," _he had hissed at me. _"Betray me like this…"_ His words echoed over and over again in my mind. If he wanted me to leave him alone, then I would.

I sat on my rock by the edge of the waterfall. The sound was deafening; it helped to distract me. I sat there for a long time, just thinking about Fang. My Flock. Dee. I thought about my feelings, how Fang had wanted me to leave him alone. _"Just leave me alone," _I heard him hiss yet again. _"Leave me alone. Alone. Alone." _

I couldn't take it anymore. I finally broke down. First it was just a whimper, but into turned into full on crying in, like, five minutes. My personal record. I sat there, my head in my hands, crying and crying. I sat like this, crying, for a good part of the day. Near sunset, I heard someone behind me, but I didn't care. If it was Ari, let him take me. Anything was better than this. The 'someone' I had heard sat down next to me. Putting his arm around my shoulders, he said, "Max."

I recognized the voice instantly. It was Fang. I stopped crying, long enough to jump up. He looked shocked. I stared at him, unmoving. "Max," he said again. Was he waiting for me to talk to him? I wanted him to hold me so much, to stroke my hair and tell me everything was fine, like he did to Angel. But everything wasn't fine.

"I'm so sorry…" he whispered. Really? He was sorry? Oh, for what? A) For breaking my heart? B) For crushing me? C) For choosing _Dee _over _ME??_ Or was it D) All of the above?! He stood up and took a step toward me. I took a step back. He stared at me, much how I was staring at him, only with a different look in his eyes. Was it the realization of what he had done?

He stepped toward me once again, and again I stepped back. Two toward me, two back. I realized that if I stepped any further back, I would fall off the edge of the cliff, down to the swirling waters. "Max," he said again, a little louder. "I'm so, so sorry. I can't believe I actually thought Dee was telling the truth…" He went on to say how much he had missed me, and that he had watched me all day, wondering what do to.

Something moved out of the corner of me eye. I quickly looked over. It was Dee. She smiled malevolently, and I bet she wanted so much to let out an evil cackle. She took a step toward Fang and I. She started running toward me. She was quite a ways away, but getting closer every second. She wasn't even headed for Fang. She was headed... no! She was headed for me! I couldn't move out of the way, though. If I did, she wouldn't be able to stop, therefore pushing Fang off the edge. My Fang.

I pulled Fang into my arms, hugging him tightly, and kissed him on the cheek. "Fang," I whispered quickly, as Dee was almost here. I forgive you. Now back away quickly, okay? It's important. Don't ask any questions. I love yams too."

You're probably thinking: What?! You're just gonna give up, just like that? And you said you didn't like yams! I don't have time to explain right now.

I pushed Fang away, and he stepped back. I looked at Dee and waited. She ran at me, and smashed into me, pushing me with all her might off the edge. She nearly fell off herself, but steadied herself as stood upright once more. I was falling quickly. I smiled. I didn't even move my wings. Why not give Dee the satisfaction?

You're probably thinking: MAX! You dumb idiot! Fly! FLY!! Save yourself! Why didn't you push Dee off? DON'T give her the satisfaction!

Well don't worry. I have a plan. I _always_ have a plan.


	9. Chapter 9

**Just a note: This short chapter is in Fang's Point of View. ******** Here ya go!**

**- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - **

I sat down beside Max. She had been crying for a long time. I put my arm across her shoulders, saying, "Max."

She looked really startled. She jumped up from the rock and glared at me. "Max," I said again. I searched her face for something I was missing – I was sure there was something – but I found nothing.

"I'm so sorry…" I whispered. I waited for her to reply. To say it was okay. To say that everything was fine. But it wasn't. I had wrecked our fragile relationship. I stepped toward her, and she stepped back. I took another step toward her, and she stepped back once more.

"Max," I said again, a little louder. "I'm so, so sorry. I can't believe I actually thought Dee was telling the truth. I missed you so much. I watched you, all day. I didn't know what to do." Max turned her head. She looked scared for a moment, then shocked, and then she looked back at me.

She quickly pulled me into her arms, hugging me tightly. I wrapped one arm around her waist, and stroked her hair with the other. "Fang," she whispered in my ear, "I forgive you. Now back away quickly, okay? It's important. Don't ask any questions. I love yams too." I was shocked. I wanted to ask why, but just then Max pushed me away. I took a step back, gazing at Max.

Something crashed into Max right then. I saw a flash of red, and realization hit me: it was Dee. Max flew, and by flew I don't mean like a bird, off the edge of the cliff. "MAX!" I yelled. I leaped toward the edge, but Dee caught me.

"Where are you going, Fang?" Dee asked sweetly. I punched her in the nose. She fell back, staggering, and fell to the ground. I looked over the edge, to see Max falling quickly, getting closer to the fog that swirled above the water. Was she smiling?


	10. Chapter 10

The fog enveloped me, and I opened out my wings. It was almost painful when they caught the air sharply, but it felt good to be flying again. I laughed silently to myself as I thought about the look on Fang's face when he looked over at me. He looked so shocked, so terrified, which was good. I mean, not _good, _it's not like I wanted to hurt Fang or anything! But it was going according to plan.

I soared below the cliff, down past where Fang was still standing, watching me. Would he jump off the cliff and look for me? I wonder if I could talk to people through my mind, like Angel said. I thought really hard, but finally came up with this:

"Fang. Don't worry. Don't jump."

Let's hope it worked. I flew upward, now out of Fang's and Dee's vision. It would take them a bit long to get back to the meadow, even if they flew, so I had enough time. "Guys! It's Max!" I yelled through the meadow. Everyone ran toward me, hugging me. "I take it Angel has already told you?" I asked.

"Yeah!" Three voices said in unison.

"Okay then, here's the plan…"

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Fifteen minutes later, Gazzy, Iggy, and Nudge were well informed on the plan. Angel had known for quite some time. She's a great little kid.

"Actually, Max, I'm seven now." Angel said.

"Weeellll, I don't know about that," I said, smiling.

"Max! They're here!" Nudge whisper-yelled to me.

"Okay, everyone! Get in your places! Operation GDOH is a go!"

Then the real fun began.

Because it was so late at night, fog had rolled in around us, and was creeping toward the center of the meadow. Fang appeared on the far side of the clearing, looking troubled, with Dee close behind him. She was holding her nose and blood covered her hand. Serves her right. For this plan to work, Fang couldn't know what we were about to do. Too bad.

Gazzy perfectly imitated an owl-call, causing Fang and Dee to look toward the left. Nudge rustled the leaves to their right, and Iggy snapped a twig. "What was that??" Dee whispered to Fang, who paid her no attention. She looked totally freaked out. "W-who's there?" She called out. "Show yourself!" Right on cue, Gazzy said in my voice, "You killed me. You kiiiiilllllleeeeddd me. But now, I have come back." Now that was creepy. Even Fang looked freaked out.

"Leave us alone!" Dee cried. My turn.

I stepped from behind a tall tree, my wings out behind me. I was dressed in a long, white dress with a black veil over my face. I flew close to the ground, over to where Dee was shaking. Once again, Gazzy's turn. "How could you kiiiiillll me? Hooooowwww?" Dee honestly looked freaked out. She spread out her wings and leaped up into the air.

"I'm sorry!" she cried.

"Mwahahaha," Gazzy said once again. "I banish thee from thy presence! Go!" I long, bony finger came from beneath my white sleeve, pointing toward the sky. "And never come to the Flock again!" Gazzy finished. I admit, a bit childish. But hey! I _am_ only fourteen!

Angel, Nudge, Gazzy and Iggy appeared from the forest, laughing their butts off. Fang still looked shocked. I walked over to him. "Fang?"

He didn't say anything. I walked closer to him, looking into his eyes. Taking off my veil, I threw it to the ground and hugged Fang. He wrapped his arms around me and stroked my hair, just like I had wanted him to. "Oh, Max…" I smiled. Fang looked at me, tears in his eyes.

"Fang, I'm sorry I couldn't tell you. It was all a plan. Dee was lying, and Angel and I knew it, so we decided to do this to get her back." I looked into his eyes, his handsome, dark eyes….

"Max."

"Fang."

"I love yams, Max."

"I love yams, too, Fang."

And we kissed, our lips meeting joyously. He wrapped his arms tighter around me and my hands rested on the back of his head. We continued to kiss – much to the surprise of the Flock – whose eyes were wide with amazement.

"EW!" Nudge yelled. "I _hate _yams!!"


	11. Chapter 11

A new day always promises new things. Or old things with new opinions. Same difference.

Angel walked up to me. "Max," she said. "It's my birthday today."

"It is?" I asked.

"Yeah. Can we celebrate?"

"Of course, sweetie! What do you want to do?"

"Um, can we see a movie?"

"A what?!"

"You know a movie! In a theater?"

"Oh. Uh, I don't think tha-"

"Please, Max? I've never been to a movie before!"

"Oh, alright. Which movie?"

"How about 'The Princess and The Pauper'?"

"Um, okay then. Let's go wake up the rest of the Flock, okay?"

By dinner, everyone was hungry, even though we had had a huge lunch. We got to the movie theater on time to see the 6:00 showing. "Ok, you guys, go find your seats. I'll go get us some popcorn, alright?" I said. Fang volunteered to come with me. I looked up at the big menu, and then back at the guy behind the counter. His name-tag read "Eric".

"Hey, what can I get for you?" Eric asked me. He smiled at me. Fang tensed up beside me.

"Hi, I'll take three large popcorns and six large cokes," I told him. He handed the cokes to Fang, who went to get straws for all of us. As Eric handed me a tub of popcorn, our fingers brushed.

"If he your boyfriend?"

"Excuse me?" I said.

"Is he," Eric said, pointing to Fang, who was walking toward me, "your boyfriend?"

I didn't know what to say. Was he seriously asking me If Fang was my boyfriend? "Um, why?" I asked him.

"Well, if he isn't, maybe you'd like to go to dinner or something..?" Eric looked at me.

Fang had just joined us. He totally didn't know what was going on. "Well, in that case, Eric," I said sweetly, "he is." I turned to Fang and kissed him on the lips. Fang smiled. Eric had a bewildered look on his face. "Oh, and by the way," I said to Eric, "never ask a girl if that's her boyfriend." I turned, carrying the popcorn and a drink.

"Sorry, dude," Fang said to Eric. "You just made her mad." He turned with the remaining drinks in his hands and we went into theater number 13.

The opening credits were just starting. The lights dimmed and I searched for Angel. I found her sitting in the very first row, with the rest of the Flock sitting on her sides. "I am _not _sitting that close to the screen, Max," Fang whispered. I nodded. Trust me, I wasn't going to either!

We found some available seats near the center of theater and sat there. Gazzy came up and grabbed the drinks from us, and then came back for some popcorn. "Thanks," he whispered before disappearing into the dark again. Then I realized it: it was dark. With no windows.

Oh.

My.

God.

No windows. No escape routes! I started a hysterical freak-out in my brain, looking every-so-often around the theater. No threats so far. Then I felt Fang's hand in mine.

"Max, calm down. It's just a movie theater." That made me less fidgety. At least I knew that Fang was there. We watched the rest of the movie in silence, occasionally looking at each other.

When the movie was done, everyone met up outside the theater. A bright smile lit Angel's face, and Nudge and Iggy were laughing together. I smiled at Fang.

"Max. You didn't tell me that was a _BARBIE _movie!" Fang said loudly.

I just laughed at him. "Fang – you never asked!"

"Well, I liked it!" Angel exclaimed.

"Me too!" Nudge added.

Iggy just sighed. "Man, I'm glad I couldn't see it."

"Yeah, you're the lucky one!" Gazzy said.

Everyone laughed. It felt good to be with the Flock. With nothing going wrong. At least for now. "C'mon, guys, let's head back to the forest." With running starts, to the whole Flock soared into the sky, laughing. This was how I wanted things to be. My Flock, happy. Nothing could go wrong. At least for the moment.


	12. Chapter 12

I rose into the night sky, my powerful wings bringing me up. I felt a slight breeze in my hair, and the sun cast its colors into the sky. Pink, orange, purple, and blue swirled across the night. Gazzy and Iggy were talking about something only they could hear; Nudge and Angel were talking about the movie; and Fang was silent. That was okay with me. I liked it when it was quiet. I could hear myself think clearly. Maybe a bit too clearly.

_Maximum, Maximum, Maximum._

_Voice?_

_Yes, yes. So, what are you planning on doing now?_

_Um, go to the forest?_

_Wring answer, Maximum. Wrong answer._

_Um, home?_

_Wrong again, Maximum. One guess left. _I knew where the Voice wanted me to go. I was not going to go to Jeb's, though. All hell must break loose before I show up at Jeb's house.

_Oh. Got it. You want me to go to Sea World! _I thought sarcastically.

_Wrong again, Maximum. Wrong again. _

_Would you stop calling me Maximum?_

_Why should I, Maximum?_

_Because my name is Max!_

_Oh, I know, _Maximum. _Just thought I'd call you by your full name. Now I need you to go to 14514 North Cedar Street. It's very important._

_Yeah, right. Like I'd listen to _you_. Why don't you just shut up and leave me alone, okay?_

_Wrong answer, Maximum. Wrong answer._

Pain shot through my right leg. I cried out and clutched my leg.

"Max! What is it?" Fang asked.

"My leg… the Voice… wrong answer…" I mumbled. The pain shot down my left leg as well. Soon enough my hands felt like they were on fire. Fang looked at me, and I must've looked horrible, because terror showed in his eyes. "My arms – my legs!" I yelled, causing the rest of the Flock to slow.

"It's okay, Max, it's okay," Fang whispered to me. "Calm down, Nothing to be scared of."

"Easy for you to say," I mumbled. My wings were beginning to hurt a _lot_ and I knew it wouldn't be long before the pain reached them and then my brain. Oh God! A burst of pain shot through my head, and my hands instinctively flew up to hold my head. I screamed extremely loud, and then everything went black.


	13. Chapter 13

My eyes were closed. I heard voices. I couldn't feel my legs. I moved my head to the right so that I could hear better. "…her leg is broken…" "…will heal in time…" "…give me the ketchup!" Hmm. My brain was too mushy to make any sense out of it now. I tried to open my eyes. They fluttered open, and I looked at everyone around me. Iggy, Fang, and Nudge were standing by me, talking. Angel and Gazzy were eating breakfast at the table. Wait- where did we get a table?

"We checked into a hotel." Angel called to me.

I couldn't find my voice, so I thought, "_Thanks sweetie. What happened?"_

"Iggy'll tell you." Angel smiled sweetly, and proceeded to scarf down her eggs. Gazzy stole the ketchup from her and dumped it onto his eggs. They both laughed. It was nice to see Angel and Gazzy getting along.

My eyes drooped as Iggy started talking. I was vaguely aware that someone was holding my hand. It must be Fang. He gently leaned forward and kissed my forehead. I wanted to scream his name and jump up and down. I wanted him to hold me and stroke my hair the way he always does. I tried to say his name, but all that came out was a choked, "Mmmng…" He stroked my hair, and I closed my eyes, drifting into a deep sleep.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

I was standing in a long corridor, with doors lining the walls on my right and left. I was looking for something – I didn't know what – but I had to find it, and quick. I was running down the hall, stopping in each room. As I raced out of one of the rooms, I saw something. It was a little girl, with red hair, holding a daisy. A smile lit her face. I stepped toward her, prepared to ask her if she was lost, when she suddenly got bigger. Much bigger.

She grew bigger and bigger, until she looked to be about forty years old. I watched in horror as she shrunk to the size of a teenager. A teenager with long red hair and bright green eyes. Her smile, suddenly very big, changed. Her smile, now so scary it brought chills to my spine, got wider and wider. "Hello, Max," she said in her airy voice. "Long time, no see." She walked closer to me. "I thought for sure I had killed you," she continued, "but I guess not. I'll just have to kill you again." She smiled at me again. Then she pushed me off a cliff. I tumbled down, trying to flap my wings. I tried to open them, so that I would at least not hit the ground very hard. They wouldn't work. I reached back to see what was wrong.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

My wings were gone.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

I woke up with a start, panting. I was still in bed, and Fang was lying beside me on top of the blankets. He was sleeping. His face was calm and peaceful, for once, and he smiled slightly. "Mmmm," he said. I smiled. "Mmmaaaaaxxxx…" he said. He was dreaming about me! Although I couldn't move my legs, I reached out and held Fang's hand. He grumbled slightly and I thought he was going to pull away, but he held my hand even tighter, which was nice.

Fang's eyes opened for a second. He looked down at his hand and then back up to me. "Oh, um, sorry…" He said. I squeezed his hand slightly.

"Go back to bed, Fang." I told him. "You're tired. Sleep well. Keep dreaming about me, okay?"

Fang looked startled for a second, but then he relaxed. I guess he was too tired to care. "Yeah, umm, mhhmmm…" And with that, Fang fell asleep once again, his breathing deep and even. I fell asleep soon after him, and thankfully, I didn't have any more dreams.


	14. Chapter 14

It's been two days since I broke my leg. Apparently, when I blacked out, Fang caught me. But I had fallen really fast, so it took him a while to catch up to me. By the time he did reach me, my leg had crashed into a tree, breaking it in two places. So now, I'm sitting on the couch in our hotel room, doing nothing. Yes, we are at a hotel now. Iggy got us three rooms. Nudge and Angel have their own room, Gazzy and Iggy have their own room, and so I am sharing a room with Fang.

It's actually kind of fun sharing a room with Fang. I pretty much lay in bed all day, but he walks around and plays with the kids and does what I used to do. It's also fun to watch him sleep – I know, a bit creepy – but it is. He always says something, and usually it's my name, but last night he said, "Yaaaammmms…"

And if you're wondering, no, Fang does not sleep in the bed with me. He actually took the couch. The only reason he was on the bed two days ago was because he had fallen asleep. Anyway, our hotel rooms have a kitchen in each one, which is nice. Iggy's been making me breakfast in bed every morning. I mean, I like it and all, but hello! I feel like a lump who sits in bed all day. Wait – I kind of am.

"Hey Iggy?" I asked.

"Yea, Max?"

"Do you think I could get up today?" Please please please please please please please say yes!!

"Um, I don't know…"

"Please? I've sat here for two whole days and I feel useless."

"Ok, I guess." YES! Finally!

I threw the blankets off of myself and put my legs on the floor. Here goes nothing. Putting my weight on my good leg first, I stood up, slightly wobbling. I slowly put a little weight on my other leg. Nothing happened. I put more weight on my leg. Nothing. I took a step forward. Then another one. Nothing happened! I slowly walked to the edge of the bed. My leg still hurt just a bit, but that was okay.

Just as I took another step, I tripped over something. My arms went out in front of me to catch me, but they didn't have to. Someone caught me. He pulled me up and then started to walk away.

"Iggy," I said. "How did you know I was there?"

"I just had this feeling," he replied.

"Oh. Well, uh, thanks."

"Anytime."

That was so strange! How did he know?

_Maximum, Maximum, Maximum. Have I not already told you?_ _Bad things must happen for good things to come._


	15. Chapter 15

The next day, Angel made me breakfast in bed again. My leg was pretty much healed. It was nice to just lie in bed all day, though. Even though I wanted to go out, Fang made me stay in the little hotel room.

Angel walked into my room. She smiled and then came up and sat on the edge of my bed.

"What is it, Angel?" I asked her.

Her smile vanished. "I need to tell you something, and it's important." Uh oh. What happened?

"What is it?"

"It's Iggy." Oh no! Had he been hurt? Had one of his bombs gone wrong? This would mean that Gazzy was hurt too! Oh Go-

"No, no, it's not that bad. They aren't hurt." Oh, thank God.

"Well, what is it, then?"

"I can't read Iggy's mind."

"So he's like, brain-dead or something?"

"No, no, he's smart and everything. I just can't read his mind."

"Um, what does that mean, then?" This was getting confusing.

"I know it's confusing, Max, but it scares me. Gazzy and Nudge noticed something too."

The door opened and Gazzy walked in, followed by Nudge. They weren't smiling, and they looked worried. Gazzy sat next to Angel, and Nudge hopped up next to me. "Max," Gazzy said. "There's something wrong with Iggy." He paused. "He doesn't know how to make bombs." _What?! _Iggy no know how make bomb? That was absurd!

Then Nudge continued. "And he- he got mad at me today. All I did was tap the back of his hand to let him know I was there, and he- he- he…" Nudge started bawling. I put my arms around her and pulled her close. I looked at Gazzy and Angel for the rest of the story.

"It's bad, Max. Real bad." Gazzy said quietly.

"What did he do? Did he call her something?"

"N- noooo," Nudge sobbed. I looked at Angel.

"Max. Iggy hit Nudge. _Hard._" Tears filled Angel's eyes. "I don't know why he would do something like that." The she broke down in tears too.

"Oh, Ange, come here," I cooed. "It's okay. Everything's fine." She crawled to my other side, and I put my arm around her too. "Gazzy?" He looked like he was about ready to cry too. "It's okay. Come here."

He sat beside Angel and tried not to cry. I gently patted him on the shoulder. Nudge and Angel continued to sob and Gazzy continued to look hurt. I spread my wings out around them all, kind of like that were in a big cocoon. I talked to them, saying that I would talk with Iggy, and that everything was okay. Then someone walked into the room.

It was Fang.

He walked in right in the middle of our sob fest.

Oh.

God.


	16. Chapter 16

"Um, hi?"

Fang just stared at me, cradling three crying kids in my arms.

"You just gonna stand there, Fang?"

Apparently, yes he was. He looked from Nudge, to Angel, to Gazzy, and then up to me. "Are you guys okay?" He said slowly. Well what does it _look_ like, Fang? Oh, no, we're not crying at all. We're actually _laughing _because Iggy hit Nudge! Yea… NO….

"Um, isn't it obvious?" I said. I carefully untangled myself from the kids' grip and hobbled over to him. "We need to talk. Now."

I took his hand and pulled him onto the balcony.

"What was _that_ all about?" He asked.

"Iggy."

"What? Is he hurt?"

"No. Of course not. He's just acting… strange." Let's see. How to explain it to him…

"Well then what happened?"

" Angel can't read his mind. And he doesn't know how to make bombs anymore. Gazzy told me that. And then earlier today Nudge tapped the back of his hand because she wanted to let him know she was there and he _hit_ her. _Hit _her! I can't believe it! Of course I couldn't just flip out in front of the kids, so I just comforted them instead. But he hit her! They're all scared to death and they're bawling!" I exclaimed.

"Well." Well? _Well? _This was more than just _well!_

"_Fang!_" I glared at him.

"What? I've wanted to hit Nudge sometimes too!" Thank _God_ we were out of earshot.

"Fang!"

"Max!"

"Ugh, you don't get it!" I pushed past him and stormed across the room, hurting my leg in the process. I didn't exactly give a dang, though. It was time.

Time to give Iggy a piece of my mind.


	17. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Maximum Ride. I do, on the other hand, own Fang.

**Fang:** You don't own me!

**Author:** Will you let me own you if I say you are the hottest guy there ever was?

**Fang:** Maybe

**Max:** Fang have you given yourself to a fan-girl again?!?!?!

**Author:** Again?!?!?! I thought what we had was special! (Author breaks down sobbing)

**Max:** Step away from my man, fan-girl!

**Author:** Step away from _my_ man, fictional character!

**Fang:** I'll just be going now… (Backs away slowly)

**Author and Max in unison:** Where do you think you're going?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

**Fang:** Meep.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

I quickly made my way to Iggy's room. Didn't even knock. Just barged in and found Iggy lying on his bed. "Iggy!" I hissed at him.

"What, Max? Can't you see I'm busy?"

"We need to talk. Get up." I think it was the tone in my voice that let him know I wasn't kidding, because he stood up next to his bed. He walked over to me.

"What, Max?"

"Iggy! You know what! Why did you hit Nudge?!" I practically screamed at him.

"She scared me. God. And she never shuts up. It serves her right."

I was shocked. _It serves her right? _I don't think so! "IGGY! How can you say that? You _hit_ her! It's totally not like you!"

"Yeah, well, she deserved it."

Before I even knew what I was doing, I slapped Iggy. Oh my God, I slapped Iggy! How did I come to this?

"You'll regret that, Max." He started to turn away, but stopped himself. He brought his hand up and slapped me back. Not just a sissy slap either. It was a full-on-all-your-strength slap, and it hurt. _A LOT._ I sucked in my breath and bit my tongue.

_Just walk away, Max. Just walk away. _I told myself.

_Maximum, Maximum, Maximum. You are very foolish indeed._

_SHUT UP! _I screamed in my head. I slowly tuned away from Iggy, who was now smiling malevolently at me. There was something strange about that smile…

_GOD, VOICE! JUST LEAVE ME ALONE! _

_As you wish, Maximum. As you wish…_


	18. Chapter 18

**Just a note: This chapter is in Fang's Point of View.**

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Oh my God. I can't believe I let Max talk me into this. The last thing I wanted to do was talk to Iggy. Especially about the younger kids. This was Max's job! I slowly walked to Iggy's room. The door was shut. I knocked twice and waited.

"Come in!" I heard Iggy call. God, this was so not what I did. I opened the door and stepped inside. Iggy was lying on his bed. When he saw me, he said, "Oh hey Fang! Come sit next to me!" Um, how did he know it was me? Oh well.

"Hey, Iggy, we need to talk," I said, sitting next to him. "It's about Nudge. And Max."

"Ok. Go for it."

"Well, you shouldn't have hit Nudge. Or Max, for that matter. She's scared of you now. Nudge, I mean – not Max. I know that Nudge talks a lot and stuff, but that's just her. Trust me, I've wanted to hit her too, but I never actually would have. She's just a kid, Ig." That pretty much summed up what Max wanted me to tell Iggy. "_He'll listen to you,' _she said. _'You're both guys.'_

"I guess you're right, Fang…" Iggy looked at me. He looked kinda weird.

"Are you alright, Iggy?" I asked.

"Yeah, of course."

"Oh. Ok." I didn't entirely believe him.

"Why do you care so much for Max?" Iggy asked.

"You know why, Ig."

"I do?"

"Well, yeah," I said. "Remember? You've known for a long time."

"I have?"

"Yea. What, did you forget?"

"Maybe. Can you tell me again?"

"I care for Max 'cause I love her. How could you forget that?" What was he, crazy? Iggy never forgot stuff!

Instead of answering me, Iggy leaned closer to me. He smiled. He got even closer. I wanted to ask him what the hell he was doing, but I couldn't. Yeah. I couldn't.

Cause Iggy kissed me.

I automatically shoved him off me. "Gross! Iggy!" I yelled at him. He just sat there, on the bed. Like nothing had happened.

"Oh, Fang," Iggy said. "Haven't you figured it out? I've loved you since we first met," he said. His voice sounded strangely girlish. He got up and started walking toward me. "It's okay, Fang. I won't hurt you." Yeah well, that's what they all say right before something bad happens.

I backed away. He kept walking toward me, until I was against the glass door that led onto the balcony. "Iggy – I don't know what your problem is, but I don't want anything to do with it. Stay away from me. I mean it." Iggy was freaking me out. How could he know where I was? Unless he could see. That made sense, but why the kiss? I wanted to throw up just thinking about it. I kissed a _guy._

Well, not really. I _got_ kissed by a guy. A sick guy, if you ask me. I never even knew Iggy was, um, attracted to, er, guys. He was still slowly walking toward me. Behind my back, I flipped the lock up. Slowly sliding the door aside, I stepped outside. The wind whipped around me, sending chills down my spine.

"Faaaaang," Iggy said. "Don't walk away from me. I love you!" Okay, this was getting too weird. I hopped up on the railing of the balcony. "Fang, don't leave me." Iggy said. He reached for my legs, but I had already jumped. I fell for about a second before I crashed into something. I heard a cry, possibly from me, but it was too hard to tell, and then I was falling, down, down, down…


	19. Chapter 19

"Honey, we just need to give Iggy some space." Nudge looked up at me, tears in her beautiful brown eyes. "He'll be back to normal in a bit. He's just going through a hard time right now. We all are." Did I sound convincing or what? I hadn't told the kids about Iggy slapping me – it would just worry them – although Angel probably already knew.

I got up and went to the sliding glass doors. Pushing it aside, I stepped into the cool night air. The wind whipped my hair around my face. Hopping into the thin railing, I sighed. "I'll be back in a bit, guys," I called. "Be careful. Don't do anything immensely stupid while I'm gone, okay?" I took a deep breath and threw myself off the balcony – right into something else.

"Aiii!" A scream escaped from my lips. I spun around, my arms flailing wildly. My wings flew open, and they caught the air sharply, jerking me upward. I checked myself over – good, I was okay. My eyes focused on whatever it was I had crashed into. I shot down after it. Getting closer, I realized it was a person. Huh. Wait – it was Fang!

He was dropping like a rock. "Fang!" I yelled at him. "Fang! Move your wings!" As he heard me, his eyes opened. They widened as he focused on the scene around him.

"I can't!" He yelled back at me.

Time for me to take over.

I flew to his side. I looked at his wings. There was blood on one of them. Oh, God. Please don't let him be hurt. The wind whooshed past me. The ground was getting closer.

_Maximum!_

_It isn't a good time right now, Voice!_

_Get out of there!_

_NO! I can't leave Fang! _

_Well. Have fun then._

Pain seared through my wings. I cried out in pain as my wings stopped working. I pulled them in and looked to Fang. He looked freaked out. Hehee. Fang never looked scared. Wait! Back to the point!

"Fang!" I yelled. "I can't move my wings!" Looking at the ground, I figured we had about, what, eight seconds? Until we hit the ground. "Fang!" I yelled again. He looked at me. I looked at him. He smiled weakly. I grabbed his hand and held it tightly. I shut my eyes and trembled slightly. I hate situations where I was useless. Like this one.

_Don't let us be hurt! Please don't let us die! I don't deserve to die! _Ok, maybe I do. _I'm sorry!_

_Seven._ I love you Angel.

_Six._ I love you Nudge.

_Five._ I love you Gazzy.

_Four._ I love you, Iggy.

_Three._ I love you, Mom.

_Two. _I love you, Ella.

_One. _I love you, Fang.

We hit the ground with a sickening thud.

________________________________________________________________________________


	20. Chapter 20

The night around me was still. Nothing around me moved. I turned my head to the side to see him lying on the ground, covered in blood. Fang. My hand was still wrapped around his. I sucked in a breath and sat up slowly, preparing for the searing pain that was sure to come. Nothing happened. I stood slowly, and checked myself for any injuries that come from jumping off a hotel and falling twenty stories before hitting the ground. Nothing. This just wasn't real. It couldn't be happening. If you fall twenty stories, you die. I wasn't dead. Or was I? At least Fang was here.

I walked over to him and bent down beside him. He didn't look to good. Brushing a strand of hair from his face, I whispered, "Fang? Are you there? Can you hear me?" He didn't move. "Fang?" I said a bit louder. "Fang??" Still he lay unmoving on the cold ground. I could see his wing was pretty mangled up. He wouldn't be able to fly for at least a week. "Fang?" Still no movement. I shook his shoulder slightly. I shook it again, only harder. Still no movement. This was bad. Really bad.

_Oh God, Oh God, Oh God, Oh God, Oh God, Oh Go-_

_Maximum. Calm down._

_FANG IS DEAD! OH GOD OH GOD OH GOD OH G-_

_Maximum. Fang is not dead. Calm down. He's okay. You're okay. Everything is okay._

_NO IT IS NOT! FANG!_

I shook his shoulder again. Still he didn't move. I put my head on his chest and listened anxiously. HE WASN'T BREATHING! OH GOD OH GOD OH GOD!! Wait- was that…? YES! He was breathing! It was very shallow, but he was alive! Yippee! "Fang!" I said. "Fang! Wake up!" His hand twitched slightly. "Fang!" I shoved his shoulder now, which just might have hurt him a lot, because he opened his eyes wildly and made this weird sound. "Fang!" I cried. He looked at me and then closed his eyes again. I smacked his upside the head. "Fang! Get up! Right now!" He opened his eyes again. He must be feeling at least a bit better, because he glared at me.

"Don't hit me." He said fiercely.

"I wouldn't hit you if you would just get up!" I replied, smacking his arm. "Now get up, right now!"

"Stop it! I am getting up!" He grumbled at me. He sat up slowly, wincing as he moved his hurt wing. I got up and moved out of his way as he attempted to stand. His right leg buckled as he put weight on it, sending him crashing to the ground again.

"Do you need some help?" I offered him my hand. He took it and I pulled him up. "C'mon. We need to get back to the Flock." I let go of his hand. He almost fell again as he put weight on leg. I went to his right side, and, looping his arm over my shoulder, put some of his weight on me. "C'mon, Fang. Let's go." He resisted a bit before finally deciding he couldn't walk on his own. He leaned on me as we walked to the front doors of the hotel. I let him lean against my shoulder as I banged on the glass door with my foot. A startled clerk-person-whatever-I-don't-know-what-to-call-them came up and opened the door for us.

He tried to say something, but I pushed him – meaning the clerk person – aside and went to the elevator. Pushing that stupid little button to the side of the elevator, I waited for the elevator to come. Its doors slid open and I half-carried Fang into the small elevator. Pressing the '20' button, I leaned Fang against the side of the elevator. His eyes closed and I sighed. If he _really_ wanted me to hit him again…

"Don't hit me."

"How did you know?"

"I've known you for a long time, Max. It's pretty obvious what you're thinking." Wait- it was obvious what I was thinking? Did that mean that he knew when I was thinking about him?? Or – or thinking embarrassing thoughts that are too embarrassing to say?? Uh-oh. I need to keep my guard up. I should start practicing my poker-face.

"Oh." The elevator door slid open then, _thank God, _and I returned to Fang's side to help him to our room. He and I hobbled over to room 213. I knocked three times on the door. The metal door immediately swung open to reveal utter chaos in the next room. Well, not really. But you get the point.


	21. Chapter 21

I almost dropped Fang. Don't worry. I didn't. He'd totally kick my butt if I did. But back to the "utter chaos part". Angel, Nudge, and Gazzy were huddled in a corner, their eyes wide. The door loudly banged against the wall. Iggy was nowhere to be seen. Figures. He'd been such a jerk lately, all I – oh nevermind. I could hear something moving around in the kitchen. Too bad it was shielded from my view. Maybe it was Iggy. I would totally give him a piece of my mind. What was he doing to scare them?

_MAX. _It was Angel.

_What is going on? Where's Iggy? Why do you look scared?_

_Quick! Run! They're here!_

_Wha? Who's here? _

_Them! Quick! Run! I mean it!_

_No, I can't leave you guys here!_

I swiftly turned around to face Fang. "Fang- something's wrong. I know you're not gonna like this, but just shut up and deal with it." His eyes searched mine. I leaned down and scooped Fang into my arms. He struggled in my arms and was about to say something when I glared at him. "Don't speak," I mouthed to him. I ran down the hall as best I could until I found a vacant room. I dumped Fang on the bed and turned to go help my Flock. He caught my hand.

"Max. You can't leave me here."

"Oh yes I can. Watch me." I lightly kissed his lips and sprinted out the door, shutting it behind me.

I crept down the hall and peered into the room. The kids were still there. Iggy was still not there. Something wasn't right. I slipped into the room and pressed my back against the wall. Angel's eyes flicked over to me.

_Max. Go. Now. It's not safe._

_Who's not safe, honey?_

_It's Iggy. It's him. He's- he's not him. I mean, he's not Iggy. _

_Whaat? Not him? I'm coming in. _

I looked out into the hall. Perfect. Grabbing the glass case, I broke it and pulled out the fire extinguisher. I plucked the pin off and held it tightly in my arms. Go time.

I walked silently into the room. Nudge just about passed out in relief when she saw me. Her gaze darted back to something in the kitchen. I crept stealthily toward the edge of the wall. I looked around. What I saw was horrible. Iggy was standing there, something in his hands. Something totally horrible and terrifying and creepy at the same time.

A gun.

Well. This dinky fire-extinguisher would do me no good. Figures. I cursed in my head.

_Max. That's not Iggy. _I pulled my head back and rested it against the wall. I closed my eyes, a million thoughts and worries drifting inside my head. I sighed and opened my eyes.

"Aiiieee!" I screamed loudly. When I opened my eyes – Iggy was right there.

"Hey, Maximum. Miss me?" And right before my eyes – Iggy wasn't Iggy.


	22. Chapter 22

I froze. Iggy's hair got longer, redder, and his face turned softer and more… feminine? Ew. He got shorter and wait – was that? Ew! He looked like a girl. If you know what I mean. I stared at him, or was it her?

"Hey, Max. Too bad you didn't want me around. We could've been a great team. But noooo, you're little miss I'm-so-awesome-I-don't-need-you, now, aren't you? Well. I guess it's just your loss. You're little decision just cost you something. Yeah. You're Flock." Her light, airy voice ringing in my ears. Her words replayed over and over again in my mind.

"_Cost you something…"_

"_Cost you something…"_

"_Cost you something…"_

"_You're Flock."_

I pressed my lips together to keep from saying something I didn't want the kids to hear. She leaned in close to me, and whispered, "Oh yeah. I forgot to mention. This whole me take over the Flock thing? Yeah. It's gonna work. And you're gonna die." I inhaled sharply.

"They'll never follow you," I snarled.

"You wanna bet?"

"You're on." I shoved her, hard, and she staggered back. Anger flamed in her eyes. She lunged at me and I sidestepped quickly. She stopped herself and lunged at me again. Grabbing my foot, she pulled and I fell to the ground with a thud. I wrestled her as she fell onto me and went for my neck. I took her arm and snapped it quickly. Pain filled her eyes as her arm hung limp at her side. Serves her right. Her gun was lying on the ground two feet away from me. I reached for it. She quickly realized what I was doing and clutched my hair. She jerked my backward and seized her gun. She pointed it at me.

She laughed. "Oh, Max. You are so foolish." She aimed her gun at my head. "See? Told you you were going to die."

And Dee pulled the trigger.

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**Oooh! What will happen next? Did Max die? And what about Fang?? You'll have to read to find out. Go on. Click the review button. It's lonely. Click it and you make it feel loved! Go on. Click! Thanks for reading! You can ask me any questions by reviewing and I'll answer them.  
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**Onyx-Roses-Ivory-Wings: No, Iggy isn't turning into Dee. You see, Dee is… okay I'll just say it. She's a shape-shifter. She pretended to be Iggy. So that explains the Iggy-Fang kissy thing. She likes Fang, and for one second she forgot she was supposed to be Iggy. So yeah. She kissed Fang. And then, cause she looks like Iggy, Fang freaked out, jumped off the balcony, ran into Max, avoided death, got carried by Max to a bed, got kissed my Max, and then was stranded. So you could safely say Fang has no idea what is going on. Haha. Poor Fang.**


	23. Chapter 23

Everything was in slow motion from that point. Time froze, at least for me. A smile was on Dee's face as she gleefully pulled the trigger. I was hyped up and full of adrenaline and jittery at the same time. The decision I had to make was literally _life _or _death. _A million and one memories flooded into my brain. I remembered my first with Fang, then our second, and so on. I remembered when Angel was little and how she would read my mind when we played hide-and-seek together. I remembered when Iggy had accidently blown up my closet, a prank gone wrong. How Gazzy would imitate police sirens to freak us out. I remembered when Nudge had first shown her interests in fashion and make-up, and that one time she attempted to make brownies. Images of the times spent with my mom and Ella rushed back to me. Even things I had forgotten about, like how I had held Ari in my arms. I also remembered the day I had my chip removed. Fang would never let me live that down. "How much do you love me, Max?" He'd ask me. I'd always roll my eyes and punch his arm.

I also remembered when Dee had so suddenly smacked into me, so many nights ago. I remembered when Dee had fallen for Fang, and how I had outwitted her. Remembering all the good times I'd had with my Flock, with my family, made me angry. I didn't deserve this. Sure, I've done tons of bad things before, but the price to pay was not my life. Just to remind you, all of these thoughts happened in about, oh, let's say… three seconds. Yeah. I'm just that smart. Anyway, I got angrier and angrier at Dee for trying to kill me. She'd just wanted the Flock as revenge.

The bullet, shiny and black, was slowly soaring toward me. Man – slow motion is so much better. As I lay on the ground, the anger fuming inside me, something happened. My breath quickened as I watched in awe. The bullet, inches from my face, hit something hard, which sent it bouncing backwards. Dee's eyes widened and her jaw dropped as she watched the bullet slowly clank to the ground. She raised the gun and shot at me again. My hands clenched into fists. What just happened?? Oh well. That was the least of my worries. The bullet bounced off of something invisible yet again. It fell to the floor.

Uh oh. My slo-mo-ability was wearing off. Before Dee could react, I swung my leg toward her and tripped her. I watched as she slowly fell. I reached for her gun and pried it from her fingers. Glancing down at her, I threw it full force out the window. It was quite cool watching all the glass split in slow motion. I'd have to do that again some time. Dee smacked the floor, her hair falling around her. She got to her feet quickly, anger in her eyes. She lunged at me, full force, but only to be repelled backward. Serves her right. Her good arm held her head as she glared at me.

"Hey Dee. Sorry about this." I ran at her, full speed, and grabbed her hair with my hands. Ew- it was so long. I don't really like long hair. Let alone long _red _hair. I looped it around her odd red wings and tied it in a knot. She kicked and punched at me, but never landed a blow. I shoved her toward the window.

_God forgive me! _I yelled in my head.

And then I pushed her out the window. Yay me.

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	24. Chapter 24

I whipped my head around, not wanting to watch Dee fall. I'm not a killer. Well, maybe I kind of am, but I don't just go around killing people for fun. I mean, the people and things I kill are bad. So there.

Angel ran to me and I pulled her into a giant bear hug. Nudge and Gazzy joined us. I hugged them all.

"Max!" Gazzy exclaimed. "I thought we were dead meat!"

"Yeah!" Nudge added. "Dee was so soo soooo scary!"

"And I couldn't read her mind." Angel smiled sweetly at me. I looked at each of their faces before hugging them all again.

"Let's never split up again, okay guys?" I asked them.

"Ok!" They said in unison. I smiled. That's my Flock.

"Hey, Max, where's Fang?" Nudge asked.

"Oh crap! Fang! I left him in an empty room. He's really hurt." I turned toward the door. "You stay here, guys. And seriously, keep an eye out. We don't need any mo-"

I was cut off mid-sentence. A cry escaped my lips as pain seared through my body. I clutched my back, just above my waistline, as blood covered my hands. I felt myself fall forward and crash into the hard floor. Yeah. I'd been shot.

__________________ ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ _________

Mmm. This was nice. If this is what dying felt like, then I wanted to die all over again. The sun warmed my face. I opened my eyes. Oh. It was a light. I was lying on a metal bed, with my arms and legs tied down. I sat up and surveyed my surroundings. Ok. I take back the "I want to die all over again" part. This was sooooo not nice. I tried to get my hands free from the stupid bed. Great- it was only elastic. I leaned forward and quickly undid the Velcro on one of them. I freed my hand and then my other, and leaned forward to do my feet. I swung them over the edge of the bed and hopped down.

I ran to the door and pushed on it. Great. It wouldn't budge. Oh. That was stupid. It specifically said:

PULL

Haha. I pulled the door open and stepped into a room full of lights. This was so strange.

"Maximum." A loud, booming voice said.

"What?" I replied.

"It is not your time yet. You must go back."

"Wait a second – what?"

"You must go back…"

I stood there, pondering what that meant, when suddenly, something hit me on the head.

__________________ ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ _________

"Ow!"

"MAX!"

"What the heck?" I was lying on my stomach, my cheek pressed against the floor. "What is going on?" With every word spit landed on the ground. It's hard talking when you're on the ground. You try it.

"You're alive!" Nudge threw herself onto me, hugging me tightly.

"Ow – yes – but not if you don't get off me!" She quickly hopped up from the floor.

I brought my hands up and pushed myself upward, and rolled over onto my back. My eyes caught a book beside me.

"Why'd you hit me with that?" I asked.

"I didn't," Nudge said. She pointed accusingly at someone next to her. "He did!" The mystery guy turned to face me, and it was none other than Iggy.

"Iggy!" I cried. I sat up and got to my feet. "How did yo- I mean, where d- I mea- I'm so glad you're back!" I threw my arms around him and hugged him.

"Um, can't breathe here." He smiled.

"Right. Sorry." I stepped back and looked at him. Had he gotten taller? He was even taller than Fang! And his hair was longer too. His eyes weren't so light any more. Hmm. Does that happen to blind people?

"What are you looking at?" He asked me.

"Oh, nothi- wait. How did you know I was looking at you..?" Oh my God. It was Dee.

"I can see." He smiled. I didn't entirely believe him. "What? Now you don't believe me?"

"I, uh, em," I stuttered.

"Fine. I'll prove myself. One time, when we were little, you told me something. "Iggy?" You said." He imitated his best girly voice, and continued. "I reall-"

Then it clicked in my brain. I clamped my hand firmly over his mouth. "Oh my God, Ig. Don't ever mention that. I can't believe you remember."

He laughed. "Of course I remember," he said. But with my hand over his mouth, it sounded like, "Uff coof I remmer." I let go of him and smiled.

_Um, Max?_

_Yeah, lamby?_

_Where's Fang?_

Ohmigod. Fang. I forgot about him! I tore out of that hotel room faster than a wild hyena. Although I probably looked like one by the look on Nudge's and Iggy's face.

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**Hey! Tell me what you think by reviewing! **

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**MaximumReader508: Yes, Max does have a force field. Cool, I know. Iggy's there, as you can tell, and Dee… Well, where would you be if you were pushed out of a window and you couldn't fly? **

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**Thanks for reading!!**


	25. Chapter 25

Sprinting down the hall, I found Fang's room. I pushed the door open and stopped.

Fang was still there.

His eyes were closed.

You're probably thinking: Then why did you stop?

I'll tell you why. The bed that Fang was laying on. It was soaked with blood.

I screamed. Running over to him, I shook his shoulder. He didn't move. I picked him up and folded his wings against his back. Then I took off toward the Flock.

"Guys!" I yelled. "We need to get to a hospital – _now!!_" I leaped through the broken window and prayed that my Flock would follow me as best that they could. I shot toward the closest hospital I could find. Journey Medical Center.

I touched down in a patch of trees behind the building. I ran through the front entrance. Memories of the School filled my brain. Pushing them aside, I yelled, "Help! He's hurt!" Everyone in the waiting room stared at me. A boy, who couldn't be more than seventeen, was working at the front desk. I went over to him, Fang in my arms. "I need help. He needs help." I told him.

He looked from Fang to me. "Um, okay… you can just take a seat over there and we will be wit-"

"I don't have any freaking time!" I exploded. "He's dying!" Fang's face was super-pale. This was so bad. "Help him – Now!" The boy jumped up and ran into the back. Two doctors quickly hurried to me with one of those little bed thingies. I carefully placed Fang onto it. The doctors wheeled him back through the swinging doors. I tried to follow but was stopped when someone grabbed my hand. It was that stupid boy from the front desk.

"Hey, I can't let you go back there," he said. Yeah. Like that was going to stop me. I shoved him aside and ran through the swinging doors.

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Three operations and a whole heck of a time later, I was finally able to see Fang. I was still slightly woozy from my recent loss of blood – I had to give Fang a lot of mine – but I still managed to stumble into his room. He looked tons better, what with some more blood flowing through him and the anesthetic he'd gotten. He'd had to get stitches in a lot of places, and it turns out he'd broken his leg. His wing was only sprained, which was good. I walked over to him and laid beside him on the little bed. His eyes were closed and he finally looked peaceful.

I closed my eyes and listened to the gentle sound of Fang's breathing before drifting off into mindlessness…

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"Aww, look, how cute!" My eyes shot open. The whole Flock was there, staring at me curled up next to Fang. I sat up quickly and glared at them. Iggy smiled. Fang's eyes opened and they focused on me. I smiled at him and stroked his hand. He sat up and leaned closer to me.

"Hey," he said.

"Hey." He leaned in closer and softly pressed his lips against mine. Oh my God. The Flock was here. What was he doing? Hmm. Oh well. I returned his kiss and wrapped my arms around his neck. He pulled me closer to him and wrapped his arms across my back. I could've kissed him happily for the next millennium, but Nudge just had to ruin the moment.

"OMG FANG YOUR EPIDERMIS IS SHOWING!!" She yelled. Fang got a wild look in his eye and checked himself over.

"Your skin, dude. Your skin is showing." Iggy explained. Everyone burst into laughter.


	26. Chapter 26

"Max?" A soft whisper said into my ear. I moved my arm in response. Couldn't he tell I was sleeping? "We need to get out of here." I stiffened. What? Why? Oh, who cares… I'm tired. My eyelids were droopy and I felt like a wreck. I think I gave too much blood. "Max? C'mon. The nurse won't let us leave during daylight. It's dark out." Oh, for Pete's sake, leave me alone. I moved my arm again. Someone pulled on it. "C'mon, Max. Let's go now." I was vaguely aware of someone's arms sliding under my legs and across my shoulders. Just vaguely. I already told you I was tired. I felt the comfy chair I was sitting on disappear from beneath me and then I was leaning against something hard.

Still half asleep, I opened my eyes a bit. I saw Fang's shirt next to me and I noticed he was holding me. I looked up and he looked down at me, a half-smile on his face. "Good morning, Sleeping Beauty." Huh? I hadn't slept _that_ long, had I? Looking past Fang's shoulder, I saw the first few streaks of light across the sky. Oh good. It was only dawn. Fang was still smiling. His wings moved gracefully, up and down. It must be hard carrying me. I'd probably gained a few pounds from all that food I was eating. But hey, a girl's gotta eat!

I shifted my weight uncomfortably in his strong arms. "Um, Fang?" I said to him. "You can put me down now, if you want." He looked at me.

"No, it's okay," he replied.

"Oh. Let me rephrase that. Put me down before I kill you, okay?"

He smiled at me again. "Ok, okay. But you do know we're in the air, right? You just want me to drop you?"

"Yes, of course I know that. Just drop me, okay? On three."

"Ok. One." And he dropped me.

I should've known. Three always means one, but not when I'm sleepy and irritable and unprepared for a sudden drop through the sky. My hair streamed out above me. This was actually kind of nice. I closed my eyes for a second breathed in the refreshing, cool morning air. Then I looked up slightly and saw Fang looking at me, a worried expression on his face. Ha. Serves him right for _dropping me._ I let myself fall for about ten more seconds, when the ground was in view. I could see tiny people moving around with their everyday ordinary lives. Lucky them. My life was nothing like ordinary.

I spread my wings out wide, letting them catch the air and pull me up. Ahhh, the freedom of flying. I swooped low over a cloud and then flew above it, coasting on the breezy currents. I quickly located my Flock, just tiny points in the sky, and quickly closed the distance between them. I caught up with Fang and shot him a smile. He grinned. Angel turned and smiled at us. It was good to be with my family. Iggy was totally enjoying the whole being-able-to-see-thing, and he was taking in everything and looking at everything. Nudge was going on and on about a store she liked and Gazzy was laughing with Iggy.

"Max! Look!" I looked at Nudge. What was se talking about? "A MALL!" She practically shrieked that last word. Oh no. Not a mall. Not a mall. "Can we go? Please? Please please please??" I looked at Fang.

"Um, I don't think that's such a good idea," I said to her. Her smile vanished. Her eyes got really big and I swear I saw her lip stick out momentarily.

"Please?" Her bottom lip trembled and her eyes formed my biggest weakness – bambi eyes.

"Ugh! Fine! But only for _ten_ minutes! And by ten, I don't mean 60! _Ten!" _I rolled my eyes as Nudge leaped for joy. If that was even possible when you're already in the air. Fang shot me a sideways glance that totally screamed, "Wow, Max. You're such a pushover." I scowled at him and said something in my defense. "I wasn't the one that let her have a _dog, _Fang."

By the way, if you're wondering, Total isn't flying with us anymore. Don't worry, he's still perfectly intact and he's as happy as a clam. With wings. A flying clam. Anyway, he decided to take a chance at life with Akila. He was so madly in love with her he practically died whenever we had to leave her. It was so boring with him talking like this was a soap opera and he was "losing the lady of his dreams, if not more". Seriously, he said that. He was so sorry he couldn't stay with us, but hey, I'm not carrying an eighty pound Malamute around! He and Akila finally decided to settle for living with Dr. John Papa. I'd say it was a good decision. John is one of the few people who aren't freaked out about Total's talkativeness. Good for him.

Iggy located a small patch of trees we could safely land in. He kept blabbing about how everything was so wonderful and all the colors and such.

"Everything is so wonderful!" See. My point exactly.

Anyway, we touched down and headed for the mall. One place on Max's List Of Hated Places To Be. Definitely below dog crates and the School, but way above being in an airtight space with the Gasman. Just in case your wondering, Nudge was practically going to explode with excitement. She is such an 11 year old some times! We walked all the way around the huge mall and finally came to the front entrance. Smokers and no doubt people with addictions were sitting by the wall. A tired mom was hauling her little kid on a leash. Poor thing.

"Well, here goes nothing," I sighed. And into the mall we went.


	27. Chapter 27

**Author: Maximum Ride, of course, belongs to James Patterson. Too bad. I wish I was the genius who created MR. Oh well. At least I have Fang. **

**Fang: You don't "have" me!**

**Author: Oh really?**

**Fang: Yeah!**

**Author: Well, will this change your mind? *pulls out Nerf gun filled with melted orange sherbet ice-cream***

**Fang: No! Not orange sherbet ice-cream!!!**

**Author: Oh yes. **

**Fang: Okay okay! You "have me"! Please, just don't mess up my hair!**

**Author: Wow. Just wow. Wow.**

"Ooh! Aeropostale!" Nudge was having a blast with this. She insisted that we go to every single store. It was so boring. Nudge gasped. "Look at this cute shirt! OMG! It's my size!" She informed me that she officially loved the stores Abercrombie, Hollister, American Eagle, and Aeropostale. I won't tell you what the rest of our day at the mall was like. Trust me, you don't want to know. My ten minute time limit had quickly turned into thirty and then sixty and now? Who knows how long we'd been here!

"Nudge, honey, we should go now." I gotta break it to her gently.

"Why?" She asked, looking up at me.

"It's been a really long time that we've been here."

"Oh. Okay." She frowned. It looked like she was about to say something but then changed her mind.

"Okay, then. Who wants to go to Jack in the Box?" I heard five simultaneous cheers around me. "It's decided. To Jack in the Box!"

An hour and a whole lotta food later, the Flock and I were lounging around in our hotel room. Nudge was watching TV, Angel was doing who knows what, Iggy and Gazzy were locked away in the closet for obvious reasons (Cough cough, bomb making) and Fang and I were sitting on the couch. Pretty close, might I add. And I was enjoying every minute of it. I was one quarter watching TV, one quarter making sure Ig and Gaz didn't kill the entire population of this city by accidently setting off a bomb, one quarter thinking about ice-cream, and one quarter thinking about Fang. Okay, maybe I was thinking about Fang a lot more. Maybe. Just maybe. We were just sitting _so close…_

Fang placed his hand on mine. A shudder ran through my body. I looked up at him and gazed into his eyes. My bad. I couldn't help myself. I was in his arms in about, what, two seconds? I planted my lips on his and was in heaven. Well, maybe not heaven. If it was heaven, there would so totally be chocolate chip cookies. Yum. Anyway. Fang and I kissed, slanting our heads this way and that to get closer. My fingers tangled in his long, dark hair, which might I add, smelled super good. Wait – is that weird? His arms wrapped tightly around my back, and I pressed myself against him. God, this just felt so good. I would totally be up for doing this all the time. Definitely.

Nudge had noticed that I was no longer watching TV. I usually make comments on the commercials, such as, "Okay. How many times can they _possibly _make us watch the "mini sirloin burgers" commercial??" She turned around, only to see Fang and me making out, and quickly turned away. She motioned to Angel and she and Ange slipped out of the room. Good. Now I had Fang all to myself. I was pretty much sitting on him now. Good thing I don't way too much. It was kind of like that scene in Twilight when Bella kissed Edward. I mean, _seriously?_ Vampires? So un-realistic. Bird kids are fine, let me tell you, cause I am one. But vampires? Puh-lease. Are they even real? I said kinda though. Cause I'm not Bella, and Fang's not Edward. I'm Max and he's Fang. Max and Fang. Fang and Max. Mang? Or Fax? I like Fax. I've heard you guys call us "Fax" before on those websites and everything. Pretty cool. Like Bradgelina. A celebrity couple name.

Except we're not really celebrities. Except for the whole saving-the-world part. So I guess we kind of are. I was really getting into the whole make out time with Fang. But he ended our kiss and held my chin.

"Max," he said. "Let's go away together. Just you and me. Fly far away where no one would bother us." Crap, that sounded good. Really good. Too bad we couldn't.

"You know we can't leave the Flock, Fang."

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

"How about I take you up on your offer? The one about finding an island?"


	28. Chapter 28

"Ok, guys, guess what?"

"What?"

"We're going to Hawaii!!"

"We _are?!"_

"Yup! Pack your things!"

"Everything?"

"Yes, silly, everything! We're going to live in Hawaii!!" Five bird-kids whooped around me. Ahhh. The life of a bird-kid. Care-free. Almost.

__________________ ____________________ _________________ _________________ _________________ _____________________ ___________________ __________________ _____________________

The sun shone down on us. The sand was warm and the ocean was inviting. What more could I ask for? Wait – I could totally use some cookies. Chocolate chip, to be exact. Fang and I had already bought a house in a super secret location somewhere on Hawaii. It was really beautiful. Our new house had huge windows, and they were breakable, too, which was awesome. Just in case of impending attack, whoosh! There we go through the windows! It had seven bedrooms, so Total and Akila could come visit us. And their puppies, too. Oh, didn't I tell you? Akila just had her first litter, and they are so darn adorable! They're fluffy and sweet and they are so loving! Total's really lucky.

I brought my bag of stuff up to my room, and found Angel and Nudge fighting over their rooms.

"I want your room, Angel!

"Well I want your room, Nudge!"

Both girls were glaring at each other, their hands on their hips, and they were in their signature "girl-pose", meaning that they were putting their weight on one leg.

"Hey, girls, I have an idea!"

They turned to look at me.

"How bout……. You switch rooms?" They smiled and looked at each other. Running into their old rooms, they grabbed their stuff and raced to their new rooms. Oh, life was so good.

I found Iggy setting up his newly acquired laptop in his room. He had gotten his own e-mail and chatted with Ella every day now. I think he liiiiiiked her. And I think El liked him back. I'd have to ask her next time I visited. I quietly slipped out of Iggy's room and found my way to Gazzy's. He had his Transformer cars out and was racing them around an imaginary race track. He was so cute. Fang wasn't in his room. He must be up to no good.

I hopped down the stairs two at a time and found Fang in the kitchen. Cooking. Oh, my God. Fang? Cooking? I know, I didn't believe it either. He was pulling something out of the oven. Oh, my God. Times ten. There were chocolate chip cookies. He put down the pan and looked up at me, smiling his one of a kind half-smile.

"Hey," he said. I ran into his arms. He wrapped his arms around me and cuddled me. I returned the gesture and pressed me head against his chest. Looking up, I smiled.

"Oh, Fang… you know me so well." I kissed his nose and grabbed some cookies before they were devoured by the monsters that I call my Flock. Fang opened the fridge and pulled out a can of whipped cream.

"Want some?" He asked.

"On my cookies? No thanks."

"No, silly. In your mouth."

"Oh. Um, sure." I opened my mouth. "Wait. When I wave my hands like this, stop spraying the whipped cream, okay?" I demonstrated this for him.

"Ok. Gotcha." I opened my mouth again and Fang sprayed the yummy whipped cream into my mouth. When it was full, I waved my arms. He didn't stop. I waved it right in front of his face and gurgled. He laughed at my helplessness. He sprayed whipped cream all over my face and hid behind the counter. I spit the whipped cream into my hand.

"Oh, that's right. You _better _hide, Fang." I threw the whipped cream at him, and he sprayed me again. Then Iggy walked into the kitchen.

"Hey I smelled – what the? What's going on?"

I smiled an angelic smile at him. "Hey, Iggy. Come here. I want a hug." He noticed the whipped cream all over my face and clothes.

"Oh no. No no no. You stay away from me." He smiled and grabbed the can from Fang. "I'm armed, Max."

Fang went to the fridge and grabbed the second can. He winked at Iggy and they smiled at me. They started slowly walking toward me.

"Oh no. No. You stay away. Fang, if you do this, I swear I will –" I couldn't finish my sentence because I was attacked my crazy bird-kids armed with whipped cream.


	29. Chapter 29

I was lounging on the beach. Fang was beside me, looking totally hot. Nudge was building a sand castle and Angel had swum off into the ocean to do what God only knows. I think she mentioned something about dolphins. Yeah. The sun was warm and inviting, and I stretched my wings out to their full width, letting the sun warm them. Gaz and Ig were taking turns burying each other in the sand, laughing the whole time. The ocean's waters danced along the edge of the shore.

"Max?" Fang asked.

"What?"

"Want some whipped cream?" He pulled a can out from behind him.

"Oh no. No you don't. Get away from me." He started scooting toward me.

"I think you do!"

"No!" I hopped up, getting sand in my shorts in the process. "Help! Weirdo on the loose! He's got whipped cream!" Fang jumped up and grabbed my arm.

"I'm weird?"

"Yes!" I squirmed out of his grasp and leaped across the sand. He followed playfully. Gaz and Ig had now turned to watch our little love-bird-fun, and Nudge was watching too, a smile on her face. I jogged through the sand with Fang right behind me. He stuck his foot out and tripped me. I fell, getting a mouth full of sand.

He came to stand next to me, and looking down, asked, "Are you alright?"

I stood. "Yes!" I playfully whapped him with my wing and set off across the sand. Angel appeared on the shore, carrying an array of pretty seashells in her delicate hands.

"Max! Look at all of these!" I paused momentarily to look at her collection.

"Ooh, Sweetie, these are so cool!" I touched the prettiest one, a rainbow colored shell with stripes. I was about to turn around when I felt something sticky on the back of head. My hand reached around. It was none other than – yep, you guessed it – whipped cream. "Oh no. No. You did not." He smiled at me and nodded. I screamed as he lunged for me, attempting to spray me again. I bounded away, taking long strides. He followed like a faithful golden retriever. Or Scottie-dog, in our case.

Fang laughed at loud as I tripped on Gazzy's foot. He was just about to reach me when I took to the sky. I flapped my wings, my beautiful wings, and rose higher and higher into the clear air. Fang watched from the ground as I flew in circles and did flips. I actually traced the words "I love you" in the sky, but I don't know if Fang noticed.

The truth was, I really did love him. More than anything in the world. This wasn't just your average puppy-love. I loved him with every single fiber of my being, with every star in the sky. Our love was complicated, but then, hey, who's wasn't? I loved every single thing about him – the way that he tilted his head to the side when you talked, the way when he hugged you, his arms formed a protective shield around you, the way his lips curved into a perfect smile. All of those things were the things that I loved. He understood me, he was my best friend, what more could I ask for? My life was perfect. Complete with drama, romance, comedy, and a bit of randomness were mixed into my life.

I flew in a huge semi-circle and stepped gracefully onto the sand. Fang ran to me and tackled me onto the sand. We laughed and I looped his arm behind my head. I snuggled into him and sighed. My whole Flock was here. The people, or rather bird-kids, that I loved the most were here with me. They accepted me for me. I loved them and they loved me. We were living somewhere in Hawaii, with the sand, the sun, and of course, Fang. I leaned up and kissed Fang's cheek.

"I love you, Fang," I whispered. "More than my own life."

He closed his eyes and smiled. "I love you too, Max. More than anything." I closed my eyes and smiled also. Life was good. It was short, so why not take the risk? You miss 100% of the shots you don't take. You've gotta live life to the fullest, take chances, cherish your loved ones, and most importantly, cherish yourself. Enjoy yourself. Have fun, make friends, and fall in love. It's that simple.

This was the way I wanted my life to be like. My family was here, on the sunny beach of Hawaii, with me. I realized something right then. My life- however complicated it might be – would be and always was this way. Forever.


End file.
